The Hermit Druid combo is absolutely nasty and is an extreme example of breaking the format. I had to play against it a while ago, when one of our players made a deck around it. We adapted, but after a few games, we all decided that Hermit Druid just wasn't conductive to the group's playstyle and wasn't very fun to play around. Plus, he had tailored the deck so much around that card that once it died, he had very few options.
You'll have to change your deck to fight it (Much moreso than against other types of combos). To take the combo parts out, add more instant speed graveyard removal, Leyline of the Void, or cheap targeted removal. I personally added a lot more cheap removal to my decks, since the best graveyard hate is already pretty good in Commander.
If it gets too bad, just tell the person that you don't like playing a deck with a 1 card 2 mana game-ending combo. Usually, they'll be pretty understanding.
I was playing my Zo-Zu, The Punisher deck, but I'd just been drawing mana and acceleration for the entire game. Poor Zo-Zu had been blasted out of the game several times, and now all I had in hand was a Shimatsu, the Bloodcloaked and some artifact destruction, and all I had on the field were my mana producers and an Ensnaring Bridge to protect myself.
My next card? Insurrection. I played it, stealing everybody's creatures... And since Nature's Revolt was in play, that includes all their lands. So after attacking with the new creatures, I played Shimatsu.
Now I had a 63/63 Shimatsu ready to stomp on their faces, and they had no lands or creatures to stop me. We nicknamed him Shima Kong.
Most of the Scion of the Ur-Dragon decks I've seen just use the other dragons to pump the general. They fall more under the Powerhouse strategy, since they abuse the hell out of 5 color ramp to get the most powerful spells in each color.
In the first picture of the card, the actual art looks a bit dull and dark, so that could apply to the actual image (Hence, the yellowish border). The actual art probably is quite a bit brighter (Same with the border).
Eh, nothing beats Damnation for sheer cool border and art on a sweeper.
(Above post)
If you were talking about my comment, I was meaning the art. The card itself is pretty much *** with new art and name (Unless someone here has a regenerator deck).
Green is, in my opinion, by far the hardest color to characterize. It's the color of the status quo, of living with the status quo, of doing things because they ARE (Instinct). Green is the color of satisfying urges. It is the color of accepting atrocities if they are what's "natural" and right.
Therefore, a green villain doesn't have to just be an evilutionist (Thanks, TV Tropes!), but can be someone who just doesn't want change or progress. He can be just hungry. He can be someone who just stands by while a meteor crashes to Earth despite having the power to stop it, because he believes that's what the planet deserves.
I just went into this train of thought because the OP mentioned green villains, and while it's tempting to make a green villain some sort of crazy mad scientist or hungry monster, it can be done in other ways too.
Sorin doesn't seem to think himself a very good person, does he? Referring his his own heart as "dark?" This could mean he A.) Knows he's an evil creep, or B.) Thinks he's an evil creep.
I'd prefer that this guy ends up being a character who wants something and interacts with the main characters (For better or for worse) to get that thing.
Making a character titled "hero" or "villain" isn't going to allow much exploration of his mindset.
Also, have any of you read the flavor text of a certain white promo card in Zendikar? It seems Sorin doesn't like himself very much.
Yeah, but all the comments keep saying "Definite improvement over ***," or, "Awesome art! Better than Wrath of God!" Has the official art been spoiled?
I don't hate the promo art, but I just like Wrath's better.
and you know what... if they would have made a card like this:
Pandora´s Box :5mana::symw:
Instant - Trap
If there are more than 5 creatures on the battlefield you may pay :2mana::symw::symw:, rather than paying ~´s mana cost.
Destroy all creatures, they cant be regenrated.
Still everybody would complain that the card is basically *** just with different costs. also a instant card *** is more than evil...
Well, I always get past Wrath by not playing all the creatures in my hand. It's usually pretty easy to tell if the opponent is playing ***, considering it costs 2 white mana (No sudden "I play a land that produces white and *** you" and is near useless when in a creature heavy deck.
So I don't think that variant would really see much play.
Am I the only one who likes Wrath of God's art better than this one's? This one just seems like "generic energy tornado #1" while Wrath of God actually feels like it's showing a bunch of people being wiped out.
I live in the States and started (VERY casually) back in Judgement/Onslaught. I really got into Magic by Mirrodin/Kamigawa, and the set Ravnica really pulled me into the game.
I'm a casual player who likes drafting occasionally.
My favorite deck I have is one I built that revolves around Haakon, Stromgald Scourge. It uses Mercenary Knights and Buried Alive to fill my graveyard with knights/Haakon, and then beats face with tons of cheap knights while machinegunning with Nameless Inversion.
I hope to become part of this community, and it will be good getting to know the lot of you.
One question to all you forum-goers: How do you make links in a card's name to the card itself?
There's something very wrong with that deck.
^: Agreed, that guy needs help.
If you have to use a legal general, the only real options all have abilities. I guess Cromat would work if you based your general choice on irony.:D
Muraganda Petroglyphs is a must. For a general, Sliver Queen makes vanilla tokens.
You'll have to change your deck to fight it (Much moreso than against other types of combos). To take the combo parts out, add more instant speed graveyard removal, Leyline of the Void, or cheap targeted removal. I personally added a lot more cheap removal to my decks, since the best graveyard hate is already pretty good in Commander.
If it gets too bad, just tell the person that you don't like playing a deck with a 1 card 2 mana game-ending combo. Usually, they'll be pretty understanding.
Well, if you don't mind being a bit random, there's always Gamble.
I was playing my Zo-Zu, The Punisher deck, but I'd just been drawing mana and acceleration for the entire game. Poor Zo-Zu had been blasted out of the game several times, and now all I had in hand was a Shimatsu, the Bloodcloaked and some artifact destruction, and all I had on the field were my mana producers and an Ensnaring Bridge to protect myself.
My next card? Insurrection. I played it, stealing everybody's creatures... And since Nature's Revolt was in play, that includes all their lands. So after attacking with the new creatures, I played Shimatsu.
Now I had a 63/63 Shimatsu ready to stomp on their faces, and they had no lands or creatures to stop me. We nicknamed him Shima Kong.
Eh, nothing beats Damnation for sheer cool border and art on a sweeper.
(Above post)
If you were talking about my comment, I was meaning the art. The card itself is pretty much *** with new art and name (Unless someone here has a regenerator deck).
Therefore, a green villain doesn't have to just be an evilutionist (Thanks, TV Tropes!), but can be someone who just doesn't want change or progress. He can be just hungry. He can be someone who just stands by while a meteor crashes to Earth despite having the power to stop it, because he believes that's what the planet deserves.
I just went into this train of thought because the OP mentioned green villains, and while it's tempting to make a green villain some sort of crazy mad scientist or hungry monster, it can be done in other ways too.
Making a character titled "hero" or "villain" isn't going to allow much exploration of his mindset.
Also, have any of you read the flavor text of a certain white promo card in Zendikar? It seems Sorin doesn't like himself very much.
Yeah, but all the comments keep saying "Definite improvement over ***," or, "Awesome art! Better than Wrath of God!" Has the official art been spoiled?
I don't hate the promo art, but I just like Wrath's better.
Well, I always get past Wrath by not playing all the creatures in my hand. It's usually pretty easy to tell if the opponent is playing ***, considering it costs 2 white mana (No sudden "I play a land that produces white and *** you" and is near useless when in a creature heavy deck.
So I don't think that variant would really see much play.
Am I the only one who likes Wrath of God's art better than this one's? This one just seems like "generic energy tornado #1" while Wrath of God actually feels like it's showing a bunch of people being wiped out.
I'm a casual player who likes drafting occasionally.
My favorite deck I have is one I built that revolves around Haakon, Stromgald Scourge. It uses Mercenary Knights and Buried Alive to fill my graveyard with knights/Haakon, and then beats face with tons of cheap knights while machinegunning with Nameless Inversion.
I hope to become part of this community, and it will be good getting to know the lot of you.
One question to all you forum-goers: How do you make links in a card's name to the card itself?